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The Reckoning
The Reckoning is a short story which first appeared in the anthology , published in June 1953. The story takes place in an unspecified English village. Synopsis A doctor and a parish priest wonder why Amelia Shore, a forty-four year old woman, should suddenly take her own life for no apparent reason. They decide to call on her sister, Felicity. Plot (may contain spoilers - click on expand to read) Amelia Shore has died from an overdose of veronal. Everything points to suicide. The parish priest asks the village doctor if he understood why Amelia would take her own life. The doctor, who supplied the veronal, is just as puzzled. Amelia, aged forty-four, lived with her sister Felicity who was four years younger. Both seemed contented and lived for each other "wrapped up in themselves to the exclusion of everything--except their garden." They were "two good women leading blameless lives". The doctor and priest decide to call on Felicity and she makes a startling confession: she had killed her sister. Felicity tells them she once had a romance with a promising young man, Johnnie Denton. He had gone to the city to make his fortune and then come back to marry her. That was some twenty years ago. But she never heard from him again. More recently, Felicity had discovered three letters from Johnnie hidden at the bottom of a drawer. The first told her that he had made good and was ready to marry. The second asked why she had not replied to him. The third said that if he did not hear from her, he would conclude that she did not want him. Amelia must have intercepted these letters and kept them away. Felicity did not blame her sister. Amelia had loved her too much and did not want to lose her to Johnnie. But much as the events hurt Felicity, she could imagine how much Amelia's sense of guilt must have gnawed on her--that would explain her inability to sleep and her dependence on veronal. Worse was to come. Felicity then read in a magazine that Johnnie, embittered about being rejected, had turned to drinking and a life of crime. He had taken part in a bank robbery and had killed someone. He had then been arrested and eventually executed. Felicity know Amelia would eventually read this, and would feel responsible. She would feel even worse. Life together would be impossible. Felicity decided to give Amelia a gentle way out and laced her milk with ten tablets of veronal. The doctor tells Felicity that Amelia had forestalled her. Just yesterday he had given Amelia twenty tablets of veronal. The bottle was now empty--so Amelia must have already taken ten before Felicity gave her another ten. The first ten would have been enough to kill her. Back at the doctor's house, the parish priest challenges the doctor. The bottle only had ten tablets. The priest had seen the bottle and the number of tablets had been written on it. The doctor admits he had told a white lie to make Felicity feel better. The doctor adds that just the day before, Amelia had told him that if anything should happen to her, would he please take care of Felicity. He now suspects Amelia intended to commit suicide if Felicity had not given her the tablets. The doctor tells the priest he had also once been Felicity's suitor but stood no chance against Johnnie Denton. He promises to take care of Felicity now, as Amelia had asked. The parish priest hands the empty bottle over to the doctor. Characters *The doctor - called "Ronnie" *Parish priest *Amelia Shore *Felicity Shore *John Denton - Felicity's one time suitor Aircraft No aircraft occur in this story Places Visited *Unnamed village in England. Research Notes Publication History References Category:Short stories Category:Other short stories Category:Adult short stories